Reading List: Authors with February Birthdays

February may be our shortest month, but we still had several authors to choose from as we continued with our Author Birthday Read Aloud Series. This blog will include the ones featured on the library’s Instagram, plus a few others.

Langston Hughes was born on February 1^st, 1901. I (Rachel) read three poems from The Collected Poems of Langston Hughes. Over 800 poems are featured in this book, and they’re written over a span of five decades.

Laura Ingalls Wilder was born on February 7^th, 1867. Amber read a portion of On the Banks of Plum Creek, but we have several other titles written by her in our collection.

Jules Verne was born on February 8^th, 1828. Darius read a portion from  20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. If you like this book, you may also enjoy Daughter of the Deep, which drew inspiration from Verne’s classic tale and was written by Rick Riordan.

Jacqueline Woodson was born on February 12^th, 1963. She mostly writes for children and adolescents, but adults can also enjoy and learn from her works. Some of her titles we have here are as follows: Brown Girl Dreaming, The Year We Learned to Fly, and Red at the Bone.

Marissa Meyer was born on February 19^th, 1984. She is best known for her retelling of various fairytales. If you enjoy Little Red Riding Hood, I recommend reading Scarlet, which is part of her Lunar Chronicles series. If origin stories are what you’re in the mood for, I recommend Heartless. This delves into the world of Alice in Wonderland where we meet the girl that eventually becomes The Queen of Hearts. One of her most recent releases is Gilded and that gives us a story inspired by Rumpelstiltskin. It was one of my favorite books that I read in 2022. If you have interest in reading a little more, I give a brief description in this blog.

Last, but certainly not least, is W.E.B. Du Bois. He was born on February 23^rd, 1868. While he is well known as the first Black American to earn a PhD from Harvard University, he is also credited for his work on sociology, history, and civil rights activism. Du Bois on Religion and The Social Theory of W.E.B. Du Bois are two of his works that we have in the Logos.

Which of these authors and titles have you heard of? Which ones do you think you’ll add to your TBR list? Hope you join us again next month as we feature authors that were born in the month of March.

Book Lovers Day

It’s an important day here at the Union University library! Most of the staff work here because of one united commonality, and that is our mutual love of books.

Here are some book recommendations from your friendly, neighborhood library staff:

Danielle Chalker, Circulation Student Assistant, enjoys historical fiction and the classics. She recommends this book:

Peace Like a River by Lief Enger

Ruth Duncan, Circulation Student Assistant, is a fan of fairy tales and science fiction and recommends this book:

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Cole Le Mahieu, Circulation Student Assistant, is a science fiction fan. He recommends this mind-blowing book:

Planet of the Apes by Pierre Boulle

Hannah Shea, Circulation Student Assistant, likes most genres (but not horror). She recommends these two books:

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

Enna Burning by Shannon Hale

Grant Wise, Circulation Student Assistant, enjoys classics, and recommends this book:

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne

Susan Kriaski, Cataloging Associate, recommends witty and fun reads like this book:

Lafayette in the Somewhat United States by Sarah Vowell

Beth Lynn, Collection Development Coordinator, recommends these two books:

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

Melissa Moore, Director of the Library, loves high fantasy and recommends this book:

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

Stephen Mount, Library Systems Manager, enjoys true crime and classics and recommends these books:

The Man from the Train by Bill James

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Savannah Patterson, Public Services Librarian, is a fan of many genres. Her recommended books are:

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

 

Anna Poore, Technical Services Librarian, recommends this book:

Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

Jordan Sellers, Library Associate, likes fantasy and mythology and recommends this book:

Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis

Sarah Zornes, Evening Circulation Supervisor, is a fan of the science fiction and fantasy genres and recommends this book:

Steelheart, by Brandon Sanderson

What are your favorite books? Do you recommend any in particular? Let us know in the comments!